


Into The Frying Pan

by kiara87



Category: Charmed (TV), Supernatural
Genre: Brotherly Love, Crossover, Dean Needs A Hug, Demon Market, Demons, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Soul Selling, implied/referenced PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-05
Updated: 2016-11-05
Packaged: 2018-08-29 04:50:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8476072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiara87/pseuds/kiara87
Summary: Two witches went to demon-market, one former-hunter was on sale. The witches saved the hunter and they orbed all the way home… hitting a few speed bumps on the way, of course. When Dean outlives his usefulness in hell, Lilith decides to sell him on.





	1. Out Of The Hell Fire

**Author's Note:**

> An AU crossover between Supernatural (post S3) and future Charmed with grown-up Wyatt & Chris.

" _There."_

The owner of the gruff voice pushed him forward into the light. He stumbled forward, hindered by the chain wrapped around each ankle and unaccustomed to the brightness. He blinked stupidly, managing to rid the red spots from his vision and save himself from falling. He wouldn't fall, not in front of them. He wouldn't show them any weakness if he could help it. He was Dean Winchester; a hunter…of sorts.

"…I have two and a minion for the mortal. Do I hear three powers?"

Dean looked towards the voice in alarm. They were auctioning him off? After all the trouble Lilith had taken to secure his place in hell; after everything they had put him through until finally, finally he had broken and done unthinkable things… Still, he stayed silent and said nothing. He knew better than to protest or voice his thoughts; a hard learned lesson that he wasn't likely to forget.

It was completely quiet in the audience, although Dean couldn't see how big it was with the bright spotlight shining in his eyes. How had life, or death as the case may be, come to this? He wasn't some slave to be sold to the highest bidder, owned by the creatures he used to hunt. It had been a long time, but he was still Dean Winchester. And though he was different now, all cracked and broken, he could still cling onto that.

"Three powers." A cold, hard voice spoke up with authority. This didn't seem like the sort of person, or demon, you would want to purchase you…if anyone would ever want such a thing.

The auctioneer raised an eyebrow, mentally calculating his cut. "Do I hear four? No? Going once…"

Dean held his breath, praying for a miracle…or at least for someone a bit more compassionate-sounding to bid.

"…Going twice…"

No one else spoke up, there was a quiet murmur of conversation in the background. Who would pay three powers for a mortal? Especially one that had seen better days.

"…Sold…"

Dean was being led forward roughly, he nearly fell down off the platform, and was practically thrown at a tall figure clad from head-to-toe in a black robe, the hood falling over his face. Before Dean could hit the ground, the robed man grabbed his forearm and hauled him up. Dean bit back a wince as old wounds were aggravated; well, at least it was less painful than hitting the floor. He scanned his new surroundings, wondering if there was a chance of escape. But it was no use. The place was crammed with demons.

These were not the kind of demons he used to fight with Sammy- these were some ugly sons of bitches. From what Dean could see of his new 'master', peeking out from under the hood of his robe, he seemed to be pretty human looking with a square jaw. He was solidly built, and slightly taller than Dean was - probably about Sammy's height. Still, at a place like this, he had to be a demon or at the very least, possessed by one. The guy jerked his head, presumably finding his 'merchandise' acceptable, and handed over three large jars, each holding a swirling blue ball of light. The price for the eternal soul of Dean Winchester. It wasn't worth as much as it used to be.

"Let's go."

Dean looked up sharply at the demon who now held his contract. He didn't look like he was addressing Dean, and Dean certainly wasn't used to being spoken to anymore, but there was no one else around. The demon kept a firm grasp on his arm. It was doing more to hold him up than pull him along, so in a way it was a welcome, if overly constrictive, grip. Dean kept quiet and allowed himself to be dragged along to the edge of the crowd, the sound of his chains dragging behind him lost among the bartering demons.

When they were just outside the room, the demon looked around. Nobody was watching them. "Okay, now."

There was a crack as a small glass bottle, seemingly thrown from nowhere, broke and a swirling blue portal opened up in front of them. Now, Dean may not have seen anything like this before, but he knew a portal when he saw it. He tried to pull away, but the malnutrition and mistreatment had made him weaker and the bigger man (or demon, whatever) was easily able to pull him through.

Dean gasped as he felt himself being pulled forward, the sensation making his stomach churn. But a second later it was over and he felt himself pitching forward as the atmosphere changed around him. Once again he was saved from falling by the hand holding onto his arm. This time, he managed to shake off the arm and stumbled a few steps away. A quick look around showed him to be in an apartment, one a couple of floors up if the tree tops he could see through the window was anything to go by. There was a large bookshelf crammed to busting on one side of him and a living area with a television on the other. It looked so normal, but he had learnt long ago that looks could be deceiving.

Dean watched as this stranger shook his hood off to reveal short blond hair and a clean shaven face. He looked human. The human/demon looked around the room, finally focusing on one empty spot.

"Chris?"

The air rippled and 'Chris' appeared. "Yeah, Wyatt, I'm back."

"They buy the fake powers?" The tall one, 'Wyatt', questioned.

"I didn't really stick around long enough to find out. Is he okay?" Chris nodded towards Dean who was backing away from them.

Wyatt turned back to the innocent, having satisfied himself that his brother had made it back safely. "Don't worry. We're going to help you."

Dean didn't take his eyes off him, clearly conveying his suspicion.

"Shall I throw the potion?" Chris asked, happy to take his cue from his older brother.

"This won't hurt you." Wyatt assured, seeing Dean's alarmed look. "We just need to anchor you to this plane before we can treat your injuries, okay?"

They didn't wait for an answer and the younger of the two tossed a vial at his feet. When it broke, a lilac smoke filled the air, making Dean cough. Immediately he felt different. A lightness he hadn't even noticed was replaced by a much more solid feeling and the chill he'd felt from the moment he stepped through the portal evaporated as he became aware of the warmth of the apartment. While he was taking it in, Wyatt walked over and placed a hand over the open wound on his shoulder. Instinctively, Dean went to pull it away, but it noticed the pain fading. He looked down; there was a golden glow coming from the blonde's hands, illuminating his shoulder so he could clearly see the skin healing.

Dean allowed the two strangers to manoeuvre him into one of the armchairs, a hell of a lot more comfortable than anything he'd sat in recently. He watched as Chris joined his brother and held his hands over the opposite shoulder. They didn't stop till each wound was healed and the worst of the pain had gone. He still ached, and felt a heavy tiredness in his limbs, but compared to what he had gotten used too it felt like paradise.

"What…what are you?" Dean asked, his voice hoarse and cracking from disuse.

The younger one noticed and crossed the room to where he could see a kitchen behind a breakfast bar. He poured a glass of water and handed it to Dean while his brother did his best to explain the situation.

"I'm Wyatt, and that's my brother, Chris. We're witches…good witches." He added, seeing the look of alarm. They'd had enough years practice comforting innocents, but it was never easy.

"My brother had a premonition." Chris explained, taking up the explanations. "We knew we were meant to help you."

Dean continued to regard them with suspicion. He was quite proud of himself for not bolting the moment he heard the word 'witch'. He had never had a good experience with witches. Then the younger one, Chris, had started talking about premonitions. As well as a deep stab of homesickness for his brother, that word had brought about a fear. He wasn't used to be on the other end of the visions. Usually it was him and Sam running off to save the day, not the one being rescued. He had to find Sammy, he had to get away. But he wasn't going to get that far with the chain still wrapped around his wrists and ankles and, even if they had healed his wounds (something that still set his mind reeling), he wasn't as strong as he used to be. Although he knew he should he, Dean's gut was telling him not to panic. He'd been treated better here than anywhere else; they had helped him, and while the cynic in him wondered what they would want in return, another part of him just wanted to enjoy it.

"Christos." He muttered. You couldn't be too careful.

The younger one, Chris, grinned as he recognised the Latin. He parroted the word back to him, make sure to keep his eyes open so Dean could clearly see they weren't flashing black. "Don't worry. We're not demons."

"So who are you?" Wyatt asked with a grin. "I mean, these visions don't usually come with name, age and personal profile."

"That's because we're not a dating service." Chris snorted.

Dean remained silent. Aside from the fact he hadn't spoken in so long, he had quite literally had his identity beaten out of him. Or rather beaten back, right into the deepest recess' of his mind. Dean had refused to let go of himself while he was down there; it was the only thing keeping him sane and he gotten quite protective over it.

"So?"

"Dean." He revealed finally, allowing them in, partly because he didn't have that many options open to him, and partly because he was starting to believe that these brothers were going to help him make the best of said options.

Wyatt grinned a bit goofily. "Well, Dean, you hungry? Chris would be happy to make you something to eat."

Chris glared at his brother in a long suffering way. He rolled his eyes, got up and made his way across the room into the kitchen he and Wyatt supposedly shared, but only Chris used. "Yeah, because if we left the cooking to Wy then you'd only get food poisoning and it would be such a shame to kill you when we've only just rescued you."

"I'm not that bad." Wyatt confided to their innocent, ignoring the loud snort that came from the kitchen. He continued talking, trying to keep their guest at ease. "Our Mom is a chef, she owns her own restaurant. But Chris was the one to inherit most of the cooking genes. He actually used to help out in the restaurant when he still lived at home before college."

Dean looked at him in disbelief. Here was a guy, probably a couple of years younger than Sammy, chatting with him as if everything was normal. Never mind that they'd only just met, or that he was just sitting there in a very tattered pair of jeans, his shirt long since worn away. Never mind that they had quite literally _brought_ him from a demonic auction, or that he had barely said two words to them. They were acting _normally_. Who the hell were these freaks?

As if sensing his thoughts, Wyatt tried to explain. "Chris and I have been doing this for a long time, and our Mom and aunts doing it long before that. That chain your wearing is magic resistant, but we will find a way to get it off and then we can get you back to your family…as soon as you're ready." He added tactfully. He wasn't sure what Dean had gone through, but he had had some pretty serious injuries before they had healed him, and Wyatt's vision had made it clear that nothing good had awaited the former-hunter if they had not have saved him.

* _You might want to get him one of my shirts.*_ Chris' voice spoke up in his head, though his brother had not given any indication of paying any less attention to his cooking. Wyatt sent back a message over their link, asking Chris to keep an eye on Dean while he sought out some clothes. Their link was something that had developed when they were children. Leo had put it down to their whitelighter and elder sides, combined with their close bond as brothers. It was like an extension of the sensing abilities both brothers had; one that had saved their lives countless times and irritated their family to no end when they were growing up.

Wyatt found a pair of sweatpants and a shirt he thought might fit and gave them to Dean, joining his brother in the kitchen to allow him the privacy to change. He breathed in the scent of home cooking and considered sneaking a taste.

"Don't even think about it." Chris said without looking up.

"What?"

"You know what, Wyatt."

"My own brother doesn't trust me!"

"That's because I know you. More to the point, I know your stomach. Lunch will be ready in a couple of minutes; you can wait until then."

Dean almost smiled as he heard the brothers bickering in the kitchen. In a way it reminded him of the way he and Sammy had been, only more normal. This pair clearly had a, some might say, more stable balance between natural and supernatural than the Winchester's had ever managed. They had a flat and ate food that wasn't purchased from a greasy diner or a gas station. Thinking of food made his stomach grumble. When was the last time he ate? He was undoubtedly thinner than he had been. The manual labour expected of all the slaves (how he had hated that word, but it fit) meant that there was still some muscle determinedly clinging to his bones, but the malnutrition had made him weaker, his skin so pale it almost looked translucent.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Chris had noted a fatal flaw in their plan, one he silently communicated with his brother. _*How's he meant to change when he's got those chains on?*_

_*Oh. Right.*_ Mentally slapping himself, Wyatt went back into the living room and, much to Dean's wide-eyed surprise, orbed the clothes directly onto him. He already looked a hundred times better, Wyatt observed, now that they had healed his injuries and given him some hole-free clothes.

"Fuck." Dean had muttered when he'd found himself enveloped in blue lights. But when the lights had cleared, he was dressed. It was beyond weird.

"Food's done." Chris called out, making no comment on the clothes.

Hesitantly, Dean approached the breakfast bar and perched uncomfortably on one of the stools.

"It's chicken, hope that's okay." Chris said, setting down a bowl of thick soup - the same kind their mom had made when he or Wyatt were ill - in front of Dean. Privately Chris thought that at this point Dean would eat pretty much anything, but he didn't want to overload his stomach and make him even worse.

Wyatt reached for one of the crusty rolls and started eating. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Dean slowly take a sip of the soup, then it was like a switch had been flicked and he finished the bowl quickly. He caught Chris' eye and realised that they were both thinking the same thing: when was the last time this guy had eaten a decent meal?

Dean was savouring the food, he felt like he could eat and eat forever. But when he got halfway through his second portion (the bowl had wordlessly been refilled as soon as he was finished), he set his spoon down feeling fuller than he had since before he had died. His stomach had definitely shrunk.

"Had enough?"

Dean nodded. "Thanks."

Chris grinned at him. Piper had always said that everything was made easier when you weren't hungry, and already he could see that Dean was looking slightly less suspicious towards them and he seemed more relaxed. The colour was already starting to return to Dean's cheeks and the deep frown had disappeared.

"We'll start working on the chain tomorrow." Wyatt said as he too finished his meal.

Though he didn't say anything, it was obvious Dean was wondering why they couldn't start right away.

"We don't know how it's booby trapped." Wyatt explained. "I want to make sure I've got a good read of its magical signature and Chris wants to do more research before we try anything. We don't want to try anything that might set off any spells or curses that could hurt you unless we think it has a real shot of working."

Dean nodded. That made sense, but he just really wanted to get back to Sam. "My brother…"

"Do you want to call him?"

After a moment's hesitation, Dean shook his head. If he called Sammy, then he would immediately be on his way here and Dean didn't want his brother to see him like this. Not yet anyway. Not while Dean was still in chains like a fucking _slave_ and his brain was so fried that he wouldn't be able to doge any of his 'too-smart-for-his-own-good' little brother's questions. A good night's sleep would make so much difference.

"We'll get the chain off as soon as we can." Wyatt promised, sensing Dean disappointment.

"Why are you doing this?"

Wyatt looked confused. "You need our help. They said at the market that you used to be a hunter, why did you do that if you didn't want to help people?"

Dean nodded, conceding the point even though he still wasn't sure he understood. It had been so long since he had been in a position to help anyone, he wasn't sure he remembered why he had done it anymore.

"You want to have a shower or sleep or something?" Chris offered.

Five minutes later, Dean was standing in the shower and beginning to feel human again. He turned the heat up high, letting the scalding water fall over his body and wash away the last traces of hell. Okay, so it wasn't really that easy. Although the physical scars had disappeared in that healing golden glow, there were ones that went much deeper than that. He just needed a day or two to get his head together, then he could go back to Sam and things could go back to normal.

* * *

"Anything in the Book of Shadows?"

"Only what we already knew." Chris answered, closing the book with a frustrated sigh. He'd known that it would be no good before he had even looked; he knew that book forwards and back. "I better orb it back to the Manor before Mom notices it's missing."

As the family heirloom vanished in blue lights, Wyatt closed his eyes, reaching out with his magic to where he could feel Dean and the silver chain wrapped around his wrists and ankles. He felt the magical signature, sensing the enchantments around it. "I don't think there's any booby traps on the chain - they probably don't think they're needed. I don't think we'll have any problems with it."

"Well, we do rock."

Wyatt rolled his eyes, but allowed himself a small smile at his brother's matter-of-fact reply. They had proven themselves over and over to be competent witches and whitelighters, continuing their family's legacy when the Charmed One's had finally let them take the lead in the demon hunting business. They were by no means retired, and the younger generation knew that their parents wouldn't be able to help themselves from giving their two cents worth, but the time had come for the next line of defence to come forward.

"Earth to Wy!"

"What? Sorry, I was just thinking."

"Don't strain yourself, bro." Chris snorted. "I was saying that I have to call Mom and let her know I can't work tonight."

"Why not? I can watch the innocent."

"Yeah, until a charge calls for you and you have to orb off to Europe."

"You just don't want to work tonight." Wyatt retorted.

Chris smirked smugly before jumping up from his seat. "Hey Dean, find everything you need?"

Dean gave him an unreadable look. "Yeah…"

"Great. That's…great." Chris said, noting that Dean seemed more relaxed now he wasn't covered in several months build up of hell-dust.

"You better phone Mom now so she can get another bar tender in."

"It's only a Wednesday, so it should be fine." Chris said, but moved to the phone nonetheless.

"And don't mention the demon market!" Wyatt called after him.

Chris shot his brother a look which clearly said: 'what am I, stupid?'. "Hey Mom! We're fine, well except that Wyatt tried to kill us with his cooking again… I know! That's what I told him!"

Wyatt glared at his sibling. He was certainly not the worst cook in the family, that right was reserved for his Aunt Phoebe, although he couldn't deny being a lazy cook. It just didn't thrill him like it did Chris and their mom.

"…Yeah, well we've got this innocent staying with us at the moment….Wyatt and I saved him… Oh just somewhere in the Underworld, look Mom, I've got to go, duty calls and all that… Umm, maybe. We'll see how things are going tomorrow…We will…Love you too."

Dean stood in the doorway awkwardly. He'd never been on this end of the saved-saviour spectrum. He didn't like being the helpless one.

"Mom invited us to dinner tomorrow. _All_ of us." Chris added with a not-so-subtle glance at Dean who shifted uncomfortably.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Wyatt said smoothly, though he thought it would be a good idea. Although his family could be a bit overwhelming at times, they were good at what they did, at helping innocents. Plus, it would show Dean one of the good things in the world. "You off the hook?"

Chris nodded. "I'm at your disposal."

"Idiot."

"Takes one to know one." Chris bit back immediately.

Wyatt was well used to his brother's smart mouth. But that didn't stop him from trying to get even every once in a while. "Hey Dean, if we do go to dinner don't mention the whole demon market thing. When Chris was fourteen he went on a demon hunter kick, went there on his own and almost got himself sold to a clan of demons. Ever since then little Chrissy hasn't been allowed to go to market without his Mommy."

Dean grinned slightly and Chris blushed. "At least I was getting a good price. Aunt Paige was upset to find out that I was worth more that her."

"Imagine how much the Twice Blessed would get." Wyatt said with a grin as Chris rolled his eyes. "So, Dean, we did some research while you were in the shower. Chris and I think it will be easy enough to remove those chains."

"Do it." Dean said without a thought, impressed with himself for just taking the plunge and consenting to let them do magic on him. If it got the wretched chains off quicker, then so much the better.

"I'm going to be overloading the magical circuits." Wyatt explained. "Let me know if anything feels wrong, like if they start to get too hot, and I'll stop."

Dean nodded, resting his hands on his knees so that it wouldn't show he was shaking. He just wanted these things off, dammit. Wyatt seemed to realise how he felt, because he immediately reached out and placed one hand on each of the cuffs around his wrists. He breathed in deeply, and it started.

Wyatt felt his brother's presence in his mind and felt reassured. If something did go wrong, then Chris would know before Wyatt even had a chance to verbalise it. He began to feed his magic through the cuffs, trusting Chris to keep an eye on Dean (who was totally transfixed) while Wyatt focused on the task at hand. He felt the chains begin to hum as he fed more magic into them; they began to glow a dirty white as it built up. Then, with a flash it cut out, Wyatt and Dean both flinching as they received what felt like a static shock.

"You okay?" Chris asked, mainly to Dean. Thanks to their link, he knew that Wyatt was fine.

"Fine." Dean replied instantly, looking down to where the chains were still around his wrists. "Didn't it work?"

Without the magical barriers protecting the cuffs, Chris was able to use his telekinesis to pick the lock and they clicked open as Wyatt began to repeat the process on the cuffs around his ankles.

Dean stretched out his arms in front of him, then swung out as wide as he could. He shook his arms and laughed as the movement wasn't accompanied by a jingle-jangle. He was free.

Wyatt and Chris watched with smiles on their faces. They couldn't help but notice that Dean stood taller and looked brighter with the constant reminder of his imprisonment and subservience wrapped around his limbs.

Dean grinned, he couldn't seem to help it. Maybe witches weren't so bad. Hell, at this point, he fricking loved witches. "Thank you."

"No problem." Chris said, not a trace of his usual sarcasm present in his voice. They had done a Good Thing; all-in-all it had been a pretty good day's work. And if, by some miracle, the demons from the market didn't come after Dean when they realised Wyatt had left fake powers, then it would be pretty damn perfect.

Wyatt, having orbed the chains into a volcano, grinned. "Happy to help." He said, or rather started to say. Somewhere in the middle of the sentence he stopped suddenly, spinning around to face an empty spot in the room and side-stepping so that he was shielding the innocent. As the air shimmered, Wyatt powered up an energy ball. The figure solidified, and Wyatt extinguished the ball a split-second before it would have left his hand. He sighed in relief, glad it wasn't anyone after Dean, but irritated at the intruder for making him worry.

"Geez, a little warning Bianca. I could have killed you."

She snorted, tossing a mane of perfectly styled hair over her shoulder. "You could have tried."

"Are you not tired of her yet?" Wyatt whined to his brother.

Chris laughed. He knew Wyatt and Bianca got on just fine, well even. "Not yet…I mean not ever." He amended upon receiving a glare off his girlfriend.

"What the _hell_?"

The three witches looked round in surprise. Bianca wasn't sure who he was, and Wyatt and Chris were not used to Dean being so vocal.

"Innocent?" Bianca asked, taking into account his appearance and confused, panicked expression.

"Yep." Chris answered. "Bee, meet Dean. Dean this is my girlfriend, Bianca. She likes to make an entrance."

"Sorry about that." Bianca looked a bit contrite.

"We've been trying to get her to knock on the door like a normal person, but I think it's a bit of a lost cause." Wyatt teased, earning him a glare. "And as for the energy ball, we told you we were witches. It's one of the powers I have to fight demons."

Dean was regarding them all with slight suspicion; his earlier insecurities beginning to resurface despite his recent jubilation. "Maybe I should go."

"Look, we're not going to hurt you." Chris explained patiently. "If we had wanted to, then we would have done it long ago. It really would be best if you would stay here at least for tonight because there is bound to be some repercussions from us springing you from the market. At some point they'll realise that we paid in fake magic, and when they come to collect we can protect you. If there's somewhere we can take you to, we'll drop you off first thing in the morning."

"I need to know my brother's okay." Dean said slowly. Old habits die hard, and Sammy had been his number one priority for years.

"What's his name? Chris' part-elder; he should be able to sense anyone on the planet."

Dean hesitated for only a moment. "Sam Winchester."

Chris concentrated for a minute. "About Wyatt's height, kinda long brown hair, eyes like a Labrador puppy?"

Under any other circumstances Dean would have smirked at the description of his little brother, but not today. "Is he okay?"

"He's sleeping right now. He's near Chicago."

"But he's okay?" Dean asked urgently.

Chris nodded. As far as he could tell, Sam was fine physically. A bit battered and bruised maybe. Mentally? The part-elder could sense a lot of turmoil coming from the room, but he couldn't tell anymore that that. He was only half elder and empathy wasn't one of his powers.

"So you'll stay?" Wyatt asked hopefully. He'd picked up that Chris wasn't telling the whole truth (though, knowing Chris, he suspected it wasn't an all out lie) and resolved to question him about it later.

Dean nodded. It would be better, both for him and Sammy, if he had had a good night's rest before they saw each other.

"Cool. You can have Wyatt's room."

"Excuse me?"

"Well unless you'd prefer Bianca and I to sleep on _our_ sofa…" Chris offered.

"Fine." Wyatt pulled a face. "I knew you'd be a bad influence on him."

"Oh? Like he wouldn't have tried to get the bed before we started dating?" Bianca said, amused and well used to the brothers' antics.

Dean supposed that it would be polite to offer to take the sofa himself. He considered doing that, but truth be told he was really looking forward to sleeping in an actual bed. He had been in Hell for months; surely he deserved a bed for the night?

"Well," Bianca said, looping her arms around her boyfriend's waist, "if you're not working tonight, then you can cook me dinner."

Chris smiled. It was a good job he liked cooking as rarely a meal went by when he didn't have to cook something. "What does milady fancy?"

Wyatt developed a sudden coughing fit which sounded a bit like 'so whipped' but he was ignored.

"Nothing healthy." Bianca declared, 'accidentally' bashing Wyatt with her elbow. "Mom's had me training all day. Apparently there's discontent in the underworld which means lots of contracts up for grabs."

Chris frowned. Although often discontent in the underworld did not necessarily mean trouble for the mortal world (thanks in large part to his family's efforts over the years) it still worried him. Not in the least because his girlfriend and her clan spent a lot of time down there as assassins for hire, strictly taking out the bad guys of course.

"Stop thinking." Bianca ordered, seeing _that_ look on Chris' face. Sometimes he took too much onto his shoulders.

He smirked, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. "Dinner then?"

"What do you think Dean?" She turned to the innocent, pretending not to notice his deer-in-headlights look. "He makes the best burgers."

"Uh, sure." Dean wasn't used to having his opinion matter, not anymore. He certainly wasn't used to being asked what he wanted to be cooked for dinner.

"Burgers it is then."

Chris shook his head. "You have a five-star chef at your disposal and you want burgers?"

She poked him in the chest none too gently and pouted. "You said I could have whatever I wanted and that's what I want."

"God, Bianca, princess-complex much?" Wyatt laughed. He was well used to them by now, and he actually approved of their relationship. If anyone had told him five years ago that a half-witch, half-demon assassin would be the thing to make his brother finally relax, he would never have believed it. But it was true, and obvious to the point that even their mother had come to accept to their relationship (although she still made the occasional comment which made Chris' hackles rise).

"Do not." Bianca pouted, refusing to admit that was true even if she had been raised as the princess of her clan since before she could throw an athame.

"Sure you don't… _princess_."

Bianca glared at Wyatt; Twice Blessed or not, there was only so much teasing the half-witch assassin would take and, since knowing Chris, her tolerance had gone way up. Still, Wyatt always pushed her a step further. She felt Chris' presence behind her, calming hand curling round to rest just above her hip and she just knew by the way Wyatt immediately backed off that somehow, either telepathically or through that weird-sibling-eye-thing they did, Chris had warned him off.

"Come on, Bee. Will you help me with dinner?"

"Sure." With one last glare at Wyatt she stalked into the kitchen leaving Chris to follow with a final grin at his brother. They knew what Bianca was like, and Chris would always chose a woman with her passion than one of the mindless witch 'groupies' the Halliwell sons seemed to pick up at every turn.

Dean raised one eyebrow as he heard Bianca giggle from the kitchen, her bad mood vanished as quickly as it had arrived.

Wyatt just rolled his eyes. "Chris always did like a challenge." He murmured.

"I can see that." Dean replied dryly.

Wyatt grinned, happy to see the 'innocent' joking - even if it was rooted in Chris' breed of sarcasm. "You should have seen her when they first got together; high maintenance doesn't even begin to cover it, but now…"

They both looked into the kitchen to see the couple working perfectly together as if they were destined to do so. A brush of hands here, a touch of the arm as they slid past each other in the narrow space…it was all so domesticated. Dean dragged his eyes away as Bianca got a mischievous look in her eye and said something which made Chris laugh, then spin her round against the worktop and kiss her thoroughly.

Wyatt was not nearly so tactful. "Hands where I can see 'em, little bro. We prepare food in there."

"Don't you mean _I_ prepare food in here?"

"Which _I_ eat."

"No one's forcing you to." Chris said, but nonetheless stepped away from his girlfriend after one last, quick kiss.

Wyatt chuckled and shook his head, leaving them to it before he got asked to help. "Do you like football, Dean?"

Dean shrugged, remembering the Christmas' and Thanksgiving's spent watching the game in whichever shit-hole motel they were staying in. Those memories were probably some of the most normal he had.

"Or we could watch a film. Or music?" Wyatt continued trying to find something that their guest would enjoy.

Dean shrugged again. "After the last year, I'd be happy to just look out the window and watch the sun come up."

Wyatt nodded in understanding and looked out the window as an idea came to him. "Chris, we're going out for a bit. Call if you need me."

He got a grunt of acknowledgement from his brother, but Dean was looking at him in confusion. Wyatt held out a hand. "Just trust me."

Dean's look became one of panic as Wyatt grasped his arm securely and they vanished in blue orbs which made him feel like he was being turned inside out. They landed with a clang, only Wyatt's firm grip preventing Dean from stumbling, and when his eyes focused, Dean was incredibly grateful.

"Holy fuck…"

Wyatt chuckled. "Yeah. That about sums it up."

"Where…How…"

"The Golden Gate Bridge, the bit that's closed to tourists." Wyatt replied looking around at his all time favourite view. "I orbed us up here."

Dean cleared his throat anxiously. Okay, so he wasn't scared of heights, but this was pushing it. "Are we safe up here?"

"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you."

Dean was surprised to find that he actually believed him, despite the fact that he had only met (been rescued by) the Halliwell brothers a few hours ago. Maybe it was all that time in hell; it had made him long to trust someone so he latched onto the first likely candidates that came along and the Halliwell's had saved him from a pretty uncomfortable spot and they had been nothing but decent since. Dean looked around, absorbing the view. It was a hell of a step up from the view from a prisoner's cell.

"It's not the sun coming up, but I've always thought that sunset's pretty spectacular too." Wyatt said quietly, his eyes fixed on the horizon.

"Yeah." Dean gaped, the word sounding choked around a lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat as he looked at the world around them, bathed in a pink tint which made everything seem brighter. It was starting to sink in, he was finally free. And he was back in his own world. He was home.


	2. No Smoke Without Fire

When they returned to the apartment after the last rays of sunlight had dipped below the horizon, their dinner was long ready, but the soft rebuke died on Bianca's lips when she saw how much calmer Dean looked. Instead she smiled. "Just in time."

Chris started serving up, silently asking their brother what had happened as he set the food down on the table. "Bon appitit."

"This looks fantastic." Dean said genuinely; even better than the greasy diner burgers he had been dreaming about. This was freshly cooked, bursting with flavour, and okay, there was some salad garnish, but Dean could pick that off.

"Thanks." Chris rolled his eyes as both Dean and Wyatt started pushing the lettuce to the side of the plate to focus on the meat. "And since you skipped out on cooking duty, you guys can wash up."

"Sure." Wyatt agreed; it was their usual agreement after all. Twice Blessed or not, if Wyatt ever tried to take advantage of his brother, Chris would probably slip an anti-teleportation potion into his dinner and orb him to Antarctica in his underwear.

But, despite his good intentions, Wyatt managed to get out of the washing up too when their family duty reared it's persistent head.

"Amber's calling me. I think she's having issues with her powers again; pregnancy hormones and magic do not mix well."

Chris looked up at his brother's frown. "Well? Go on then."

"You'll be okay here?" Wyatt asked with a significant flick of his eyes in Dean's direction.

"We'll be fine. Go." Chris said firmly.

"Call if you need me."

Chris rolled his eyes. Why did Wyatt feel the need to say that every time he left? "Seriously, Wyatt, just go."

As Wyatt vanished in a cloud of orbs to help his charge with her power problems, Dean blinked. "I don't think I'll ever get used to that."

Chris smiled at the conversational tone. Dean was quickly becoming more comfortable around them. "Everyone says that at first. Then they get used to it, and get to act superior around all the people who aren't."

"It's true." Bianca confirmed with a nod. "We do."

They cleared away all the dinner things quickly, Dean standing to the side awkwardly until Chris thrust a dish towel at him and heavily hinted that he could use a hand drying up. While their mother had always treated her innocents like royalty, Wyatt and Chris had found it put them far more at ease if they acted normal; letting them help out with the things like washing up to take their mind off whatever else was happening…just letting life go on, despite the craziness.

Between the three of them, they finished quickly and Bianca suggested that they watch a film _and relax_ , she added with heavy emphasis to Chris.

He rolled his eyes. Between Bianca, Wyatt and his mother, he was barely able to get any work done. He adamantly believed that they were trying to bring him down to their own lazy level. Wyatt claimed that they were trying to remove the stick from his ass before it gave him splinters.

Still, he agreed to the film, and allowed Bianca to curl into his side with her head resting on his chest. He'd never admit it to them, but he didn't mind this relaxing lark. It was very, well, relaxing.

Dean kept shooting them half-amused glances as Bianca kept scoffing at the fight scenes. It was some action-adventure film that had come out while he was dead; low on the plot, but big on the explosions so they didn't really have to concentrate and today that was really what Dean needed.

"Oh, come on!" Bianca muttered at one particularly gravity defying stunt. "You can practically see the strings."

"Babe, d'ya want to keep the running commentary to a minimum? We do have company." Chris said, though he was clearly amused.

"Dean probably agrees with me, don't you, Dean?" Bianca said, not really waiting for an answer. "You should have heard Chris when we watched Practical Magic."

"Well they were doing it wrong." Chris whined, causing the other two to laugh.

Dean shook his head, revelling in the normality of it all. When had he and Sam last watched a film together? They were always either working, travelling between jobs, or Dean was picking up some hot chick from a bar. Thinking of Sam made a knot of nerves form in Dean's stomach and he mentally cursed it; it was Sammy. His baby brother. He should be _happy_ that he was getting to see him again when Dean had all but given up on that ever happening.

He sighed, suddenly overcome by tiredness. Had it only been a day since Wyatt and Chris had rescued him from that demonic auction? It seemed more like a week. Dean could barely believe how quickly he had accepted being back; well, he'd learnt long ago never to look a gift horse in the mouth. Just roll with the punches and if something goes your way, grab on with both hands and ride that bitch out for as long as you can. He fully intended to do just that.

He settled back into the sofa, relishing the almost forgotten delights of actual cushions, and forced himself to stop thinking about the future. Yesterday, he hadn't even had a future. Anything from now on was a bonus. Once he had decided on that, Dean relaxed far more easily, and by the time the credits rolled on the movie, he was fast asleep and snoring lightly.

Noting at Dean's attention was fully in the land of nod, Chris and Bianca began to talk in low voices.

"You and Wyatt have gotten pretty attached to this innocent." She noted. "I mean, letting him stay in your apartment?"

"It's just for the night; we want to make sure that no one from the market comes after him when they realise the powers we left were fake, and he has nowhere else to go. Plus he needs some time to get his head together before he goes back to his brother." It was something Chris could relate to. Whenever he was hurt he never wanted Wyatt to know; it would only make him worry and, more often than not, feel guilty that he hadn't been there to protect his brother. "Besides, he's not an innocent. He's one of us."

"He's a mortal."

"He's a hunter." Chris corrected. "He hunts demons and ghosts. Him and his brother _save_ people. Or they did before Dean died."

She got it then. Chris always felt responsible for the rest of the world, particularly the supernatural world. Wyatt, in an unusual moment of perceptiveness, once likened it to the other timeline which no one ever talks about, the one where Wyatt was evil. He pointed out that in that reality Chris was the leader of the Resistance; he was responsible for all the witches and hunters under the Resistance's protection. But instead of it being a habit born out of circumstance, Chris' desire to save the world seemed to be bred a lot deeper into his psyche. When Chris was younger, Piper said it reminded her of Prue and Chris had smiled, happily surprised by the comparison.

"What are you thinking about?" Bianca asked when she realised they had both gotten lost in their own thoughts, a habit she was trying to break him out of.

"Tomorrow." Chris replied with a frown. He half expected his girlfriend to wallop him on the arm and say that they could worry about tomorrow tomorrow, but she was just looking at him like she hadd expected it, waiting for him to continue. "Tomorrow we're taking Dean to see his brother, who he hasn't seen in god knows how long. And, from what I sensed earlier, Sam is having some problems of his own. He seemed broken."

"So would you be if anything happened to Wyatt."

"It seemed almost…dark."

"So would you be if anything happened to Wyatt." Bianca repeated.

"I know." Chris said quietly. "And knowing what I'd be capable of doesn't make it better."

She didn't really know what to say to that. Chris didn't want well-meaning platitudes, even though she meant them. Chris' determination to do what was right, no matter the cost, was one of the things that made them perfect for each other. It was the Phoenix way, but something the rest of the Halliwells struggled with.

"If he's anything like you, then I know they'll be okay." Bianca finally murmured. "You're the strongest person I know, Chris; that's why I love you."

He blushed slightly at the compliment, and, because she could practically see the denial forming on his lips, Bianca leaned up and kissed him softly. The fact that Chris didn't think he was special, only made him all the more so in her eyes.

Chris rested his forehead on hers, just enjoying the moment and allowing himself to forget about everything else for a short while. "Love you too."

Chris had learnt a long time ago that good and evil were not the same as right and wrong. Sometimes you had to do something supposedly 'evil' for the sake of what was right. For example torturing was evil, but if by torturing one demon, you can save however many innocents they've put at risk, does that make it the right thing to do? And what if you're wrong? It's a fine line, relying on your own morals and judgement calls, because whatever decision you make, you have to live with.

Wyatt couldn't make those kinds of decisions. He was too powerful in his own right to make those life and death choices. Even the Charmed One's still struggled after all these years. But that was where Chris came in, to make the difficult decisions even when it hurt him. Chris knew his family hated putting that responsibility on him. They hated it when he became quiet and reclusive when one of their plans didn't go quite as they hoped. They hated it when he didn't tell them the whole story, leaving out the bit about the one innocent they wouldn't be able to save, because they had to save ten others. They hated it when he would disappear to the Underworld and come back tired and guilty, but full of answers. But they had given up trying to stop him (well, except Piper who would never give in) because, no matter how much they hated it, they needed it.

Bianca sighed as she felt Chris' fingers tangling up in her hair. He always did it when he was thinking about something and it always took _her_ ages to brush out the knots afterwards. "It will be okay, Chris."

He looked at her, one eyebrow raised in challenge; how is that then?

"Whatever else happens, Sam will be getting his big brother back. No matter what else happens, that will make it better."

"I hope so."

She flicked his arm, making him start in surprise. "Don't be so pessimistic. Family is strong together, isn't that what you Halliwells are always saying?"

"Maybe." He conceded, digging her between the ribs in retaliation.

She flicked him again. He tickled, and for the next few minutes they descended into great depths of immaturity; poking, tickling and (mindful of Dean sleeping on the sofa) whispered threats neither of them meant. It only ended when Chris managed to take Bianca by surprise and rolled them both onto the floor, pinning her beneath him.

"I win." Chris said smugly.

Bianca didn't look impressed "You do know I could get out of this in under five seconds, don't you?"

"Well, yeah, but do you want to?" He brushed the hair out of her face and leaned down to kiss her. He just couldn't get enough of this woman.

He was really starting to get into it, Dean now completely forgotten, but before he even registered it happening, Bianca rolled them so he was on his back, her legs covering his to stop him gaining leverage that way, and her hands pinning his arms to the floor. She smirked smugly and leaned forward to whisper in his ear. "I win."

"I love it when you win." Chris deadpanned, not even trying to free himself. A) he knew from past experience that there was no point, and B) why would he want to?

They were pulled from the moment by a groan from the other sofa. They turned to look at Dean guiltily and were momentarily relieved to see that he was still asleep, but he seemed to be having some kind of nightmare. His formerly peaceful face was twisted as he muttered in his sleep.

"No…away…" Dean was trapped in his own nightmare, but he knew something wasn't right. There was someone else in his head…someone that didn't belong. They were looking for him.

Chris was by his side in a flash, he lay a hand on Dean's shoulder, but removed it immediately as Dean hissed in his sleep as if in pain.

"Dean…come on man, wake up." Chris shot a worried look to Bianca as he continued to mutter and groan in his sleep.

"Maybe you should let him ride it out." Bianca said uncertainly.

But just as Chris sank back onto his heels, Dean sprung awake, gasping for breath. "They're coming."

"What?" Chris asked sharply, pit of dread forming in him stomach.

Dean's eyes were nervously darting around the room, expecting to be attacked at any moment. "They know I'm here."

"How? When?" Chris asked urgently before looking to the ceiling and calling for his absent brother. "Wyatt!"

"Now." Dean whispered, hating himself for sounding so scared, but he couldn't go back there. Not when he was finally free, he'd rather die, but he knew from experience that that was not allowed.

Chris turned to Bianca, ready to tell her to get Dean the hell out of there but before he could say anything her eyes widened and he knew what that meant. She'd sensed something and no demon would be dumb enough to shimmed into their apartment unless they really wanted something. In this case, Dean.

He turned back, pulling Dean up and between them as a demonic form solidified only to be vanquished as Bianca threw one of the athames she kept hidden about her person.

"WYATT!" Chris yelled, telekinetically throwing the second demon to shimmer in back into their book shelves which collapsed with a thud, books raining down on the unconscious demon.

Bianca tackled the next which shimmered in too close to them to the floor and a second later it was dust and she was up and moving onto the next.

Their protective 'sandwich' broken, Chris kept a firm grasp on Dean's arm, putting himself between the demons and the Innocent and alternating between his electrokinesis and telekinesis to force them back. They were only lackeys; big and strong, but not a brain cell between them. There was no finesse or planning to the attack, all they wanted was to get to Dean.

Dean watched the fight with wide eyes, allowing Chris to pull him every which way out of danger. Without a gun or any other weapon, he was pretty much useless against the demons who just kept on popping up faster than Chris and Bianca could get rid of them. He sensed a change in Chris, relief as blue orbs started to twinkle in the corner - Wyatt was back.

"Look out!" Dean started, seeing one of the demon's raise their arm, athame in hand and ready to throw.

Chris turned as the athame hurtled towards him. He didn't have time to redirect the blade, and tried to dodge out of the way, meaning the knife glanced off his shoulder instead of hitting it's intended target; Chris' head.

"Chris!" Wyatt and Bianca's identical panicked calls echoed throughout the room as they saw the blood pouring from his wound.

Chris stumbled back a few steps, but was able to vanquish the demon with a blast of electrokinesis, still the sudden movement made him wince. "Dammit."

"Get down." Wyatt yelled, satisfied that the string of curse words that came from his brother meant Chris was not seriously hurt.

They dropped to the floor without hesitation, Chris dragging Dean down with him as Wyatt's golden blast of power swept over their heads and vanquished every demon left in the room.

Deathly silence settled for a minute, but then Wyatt was at Chris' side, spreading his hands over his shoulder and waiting for the golden magic to appear.

"Why can't you ever just duck?" Wyatt muttered as the healing glow quickly did it's job and Chris' wound closed up.

"Why can't you ever be on time?" Chris retorted, but regretted it instantly as guilt flashed across his brother's face. "Wyatt-"

"Do you guys hear that?" Bianca asked suddenly. The distant wail of a siren suddenly got much louder and a flashing blue light reflected in their apartment.

Wyatt looked out the window and swore. "Shit, they're coming in the building. One of the neighbours must have heard the fight and called the cops."

Chris groaned. "And we have a certified dead man in the living room. We need to get out of here."

"Manor?" Wyatt asked.

Chris nodded in agreement. "Clean up first - hopefully the cops will think it's a false alarm."

As the other three disappeared in orbs, or shimmered in Bianca's case, Wyatt looked around at the damage and winced, tilting his head to the ceiling. "Okay, this isn't personal gain; there's a risk of exposure and an innocent to save." As no burning bushes appeared, Wyatt took that to mean that the Elder's were okay with it. "Let the object of objection become but a dream, as I cause the scene to become unseen."

As Wyatt watched, the room righted itself. Thank God for magic. He orbed to his childhood home, just before the police stepped onto their floor. Was it too much to ask for a quiet night in? Stupid question.

When he reappeared at the Manor, Chris had already summoned their mother and was explaining the situation (even admitting that they had found Dean at the forbidden demon market).

"But Mom," Chris explained patiently (although Wyatt could tell it was waning). "Wyatt had a vision; we had to go."

"You should have told someone, Chris. What if something had happened again? You know I don't like that place."

"We didn't go in half-cocked, Mom. We planned it all out." Wyatt injected on his brother's behalf. Then he smiled wryly. "Well, Chris planned. I oversaw. And we're fine. Dean's fine. Everything's fine."

"Did you know about this?" Piper accused Bianca who had been standing quietly behind the others.

"Mom." Chris said sharply in warning, and Piper at least did look apologetic. She tended to snap when she was worried, and any mention of demon markets or her sons being attacked in their own home definitely worried her.

Piper pursed her lips; she still wasn't happy, but they had an innocent standing awkwardly in the attic. She turned her mother hen instincts onto the uncertain looking man her sons had brought here for protection.

"Dean, this is our mom and witch extraordinaire, Piper Halliwell." Wyatt said, correctly assuming that Chris hadn't got round to introductions.

Dean nodded a greeting and Piper smiled warmly at him. "Nice to meet you, Dean, honey. How you feeling?"

"Fine, thanks."

' _Food.'_ Chris mouthed to his brother behind his mother's back.

"Are you hungry? I'd be happy to whip you something up."

Chris smirked smugly while Wyatt rolled his eyes. Their mother was a little predictable; the first thing she did whenever anyone entered the house was try to feed them up. It was her way of putting people at ease.

"No, I'm fine. Chris made dinner earlier."

Piper nodded in approval. Secret outings to demonic markets aside, she'd raised her boys well. They were good witches, but more importantly in both her and Leo's book, they were good men.

"Will you and Dad stay with Dean for a while? We need to let the demons know he's under Halliwell protection and these attacks won't be tolerated. Bianca can stay too, just in case anything happens and she needs to shimmer Dean away."

Dean almost said he didn't need a babysitter, but based on the last twenty-four hours, he couldn't argue with the facts.

Piper frowned. "I do wish you boys wouldn't get in over your heads."

"We're not." Chris protested. "A few words, Wyatt blows something up, and we're away scot-free. It's the way we always work. And you too."

"It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission, isn't that what you say?" Wyatt asked, small smile on his lips. They had watched the Charmed Ones while they were growing up, had learnt from them, including picking up their bad habits. But those bad habits worked; they had worked for years, and they'd continue to work for the next generation.

Piper couldn't argue with that. It was true; get the innocent out of the way and into safety and then throw the family's weight around. It was the best way of getting results. They went in softly-softly, and everything took twice as long and people got hurt.

She sighed. "Just go before I change my mind."

"Thanks, Mom." They said in unison. Chris shared a quick look with Bianca, one that said in equal parts 'we'll be back soon' and 'please don't get into it with my mother'. And then they were gone, orbing out in twin pillars of sparkling blue, much to Dean's alarm.

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it." Piper said, referring to the blatant display of magic.

"So I hear." Dean replied; that was the second time someone had said that, but nice as the Halliwells were, he didn't plan to sticking around long enough to get used to it.

"Why don't we go downstairs." Piper said after a moment of awkward silence, she was still the quiet one, it was Phoebe and Paige who were more outgoing with strangers, but Piper had gotten used to dealing with innocents in her own way.

"I'll set up the crystals." Bianca offered, referring to the blessed Halliwell crystals that were scatted around the house at the first signs of trouble.

"Thank you, Bianca." Piper said politely; it was nice of her to offer and by now Bianca had been present for enough demon attacks that Piper trusted her to put out the crystals properly… besides, she could double back and check that it had been done correctly.

"Leo's at Magic School, but he should be home soon." Piper said to fill the silence as they walked down the stairs.

Dean's eyebrows rose to his hairline. "Magic School?"

"Of course. Where do you think Wyatt and Chris got so good at the craft? And besides, some powers can be pretty destructive; we need somewhere where the kids can go to learn to use them safely and responsibly." Piper recited as she led Dean downstairs to the main house. She'd been on a fair few 'recruiting' trips with her husband; visiting families whose children were developing powers and persuading them that Magic School really was the best option.

"I see." Dean said; there was still a part of him that was having doubts, but it was clear that there was a lot more to it that either he or Sam had thought.

Piper looked back at him and half-grinned. "What? You were expecting pointy hats and caldrons?"

Dean shrugged sheepishly.

"Pfft." Piper humfed. "I'll have you know that all my potions are brewed in a very nice crock pot. Darn stereotypes."

Dean wasn't sure if she was joking so wisely stayed quiet. He may have been 'out of the loop' so to speak, but he knew not to piss off a woman, particularly a mom whose sons had just orbed off to save his ass.

"And besides," Piper continued. "If we all rode around on broomsticks then it wouldn't help the whole 'exposure of magic' deal one bit. A tad obvious, don't you think? And the world is most definitely not ready for magic yet. It even freaks you out, and you're a hunter."

"I _was_ a hunter." Dean said softly, the words out before he even realised it. Piper looked at him curiously and Dean shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I'm experiencing the other side of the spectrum now."

"We've all been there." Piper said sympathetically. "Okay, so yours is an extreme case, but you never stop being a witch or a hunter. Trust me; we tried. It did _not_ go so well."

He looked at her intrigued.

"It goes against everything we stand for; helping the helpless, the 'Rede…"

This time, he looked at her blankly.

"The Wiccan Rede? Do no harm?"

"I've seen plenty of witches do harm." Dean muttered.

"And how did that work out for them?" Piper said knowingly. "Not well, I bet? We have rules; no using powers for personal gain, they are strictly for vanquishing demons and saving innocents."

Dean had had the 'witches = bad' mantra drilled into his head for a long time, and the new perspective was making his brain hurt. He missed Wyatt and Chris' method of just leaving the bigger picture of hunter/witch relations out of it; something to be thought about at a later date when his mind wasn't imploding. He could handle the idea of the Halliwells as an almost vigilante witch group, fighting evil and making the world a better place. But he wasn't ready to accept a whole Magic School of witches just yet. He was a Winchester, and Winchester's don't take change well. Right now, Dean was just content to believe that the Halliwells weren't going to stew him up with some eye of newt and toe of frog. The rest could wait until later. He could talk it over with Sam.

With that decided, Dean half-listened to Piper's talk, nodding at the appropriate places and reluctantly answering her many questions, all the while wondering how things were going with Wyatt and Chris. Dean wasn't used to having other people sort out his problems; he didn't like it, it made him feel powerless and he had had just about enough of that over the last year. Hopefully they'd be back soon (preferably before Piper's questioning developed into a full-blown inquisition) and then they could draw a line under this whole thing and he could go back to life as normal.

* * *

In the underworld, things were actually going to plan for once for Wyatt and Chris. They had orbed into the middle of the market, deserted at this time of day, and made their way to the office at the back.

"Hey," Chris said, causing the two demons pouring over contracts at the desk to look up. "I believe you've been looking for us?"

The demons looked up, jaws dropping as they saw the two most powerful witches in the world standing in their office. One of them opened his mouth to call their guards.

"Ah-ah." Chris interrupted. "I think we can resolve this without involving security."

"We want Dean Winchester's contract." Wyatt said without preamble. It wasn't like they didn't know why they were there anyway.

"You have it." One demon said. "Pending payment."

Chris leaned forward to whisper conspiratorially. "You do realise that there's not going to be a payment, don't you?"

The demon was adamant. "You agreed to the terms of sale when you bid."

"Well we're renegotiating." Wyatt said, a hard edge in his voice that only demons saw.

"And, considering your flunkies trashed our apartment, we're willing to call it even."

"The deal was: one mortal soul for three powers." The more stupid of the two demons insisted. The other one was wisely staying silent.

Wyatt pretended to think it over. "Here's a new deal: one mortal soul, and we don't kill you."

"Sounds like a good deal to me." Chris chimed in. "How about it boys? You want to live?"

The previously-silent demon finally spoke up. "You can have the mortal."

" _What?"_

"Good choice." Wyatt observed, still in his 'Twice Blessed' enforcer-voice.

"It's just a mortal, Bane." Formerly-quiet demon said to his companion as her perused the scrolls lining the length of one of the walls. "He's worth nothing to us; certainly not starting a feud with the Halliwells."

Wyatt and Chris exchanged looks of amusement; their family's reputation did come in handy at times.

"Here." The demon said, handing over a scroll marked 'Winchester, Dean'. "And this will be the end of it."

"Until you step out of line." Wyatt said harshly, grabbing the offered scroll. "We'll be watching, make no mistake."

"Pleasure doing business with you." Chris grinned, and they orbed away before either of the demons could retort.

They arrived back in the attic, and Wyatt immediately set fire to Dean's contract, the magical flames quickly burning it to ash. "I don't think Dean needs to see that."

Chris nodded in agreement. "I just wish we could shut that place down for good."

"I know." Wyatt agreed. "But as long as there are people willing to sell their souls, there will be demons wanting to buy them."

"We should find Dean; see if he's given in and let Mom cook him a five-course feast yet."

"Or if he's had to referee another round of Mom versus Bianca."

"Don't even go there." Chris groaned. Yes, his mom didn't approve of Bianca. She'd made that very clear, but they were both making an effort to be civil and get along for Chris' sake, something he was incredibly grateful for, because trying to keep them apart the whole time had been killing him. Still though, when they were together, Piper couldn't seem to help but make a few comments; after everything Chris had been through she was very protective over him, and of Wyatt of course, and she could never forget the look on Chris' face when Bianca had betrayed him and hurt him when they were both in 2001. But she would try, and they couldn't ask much more than that.

* * *

Dean and Bianca were sitting in the living room, comparing battle stories. When Bianca had been a full-time Phoenix, she had seen a lot of back-street America on demon hunts so they were comparing notes. The easiest hunt, most difficult and down-right freakiest….all discussed with an ease Dean had almost forgotten.

The minute Wyatt and Chris descended down the stairs, they both looked up. Bianca let out a breath of relief without even realising as Chris crossed the room to loop an arm around her waist, cocky smirk in place that told her more that Wyatt's brief recount could. Mission accomplished.

"It's over." Wyatt said simply. "They destroyed your contract; you're a free man."

Chris smiled genuinely at the shocked look on Dean's face. It was nice when they felt like they actually made a difference in someone's life. Better than nice. It made all the pain and heartache worth it.

"Where's Mom?"

"Kitchen." Bianca said with a roll of the eyes.

"You gave in?" Chris was surprised; Bianca was usually pretty good at resisting his mother's feeding tactics.

"Actually no; she's cleaning, or preparing for tomorrow's lunch, or taking inventory…something."

"Sounds about right." Wyatt agreed. "I'll let her know we're back."

Ten seconds later, Piper was out to check on Chris and see for herself that they really were no worse for wear. Even after all this time, she still hated that her sons went out after demons by themselves.

"See? I told you we were both fine." Wyatt said, part amused, part irritated. Sometimes Piper mother-henned so much, they half-expected her to lay an egg.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Piper asked doubtfully, eyeing them both over critically.

"We're fine, Mom." Chris said, a hint of exasperation coming into his voice as Bianca tried not to smirk at his side.

"We should go home; it's late." Wyatt said swiftly before Piper could comment on Chris' tone of voice and an argument start. It had been a long day and they were both tired.

Piper frowned. "Are you sure you don't want to stay here tonight? We have more room."

"That's okay, Mom, we've got everything set up at home."

Dean relaxed slightly. He just felt more comfortable with the two brothers than in a big family home; that atmosphere was totally alien for him.

"And tomorrow," Wyatt continued, "we'll find your brother and you can go home."

Dean couldn't help but grin at that. It was finally over. He was free.

* * *


	3. Keep The Home Fires Burning

"You ready for this?" Wyatt asked, all three of them staring at the door of room 207.

"Absolutely not." Dean admitted, but he knocked confidently on the door anyway.

A young woman opened the door expectantly. "So where is it?"

"What?"

"The pizza…" she looked over Dean's shoulder to where Wyatt and Chris were standing, "…that it takes three guys to deliver?"

Dean was just about to leave when he froze. Sam had just stepped into view and was similarly frozen.

"Heya, Sammy."

That spurred Sam into action and he launched at his brother, pulling a silver knife out of his waistband. How dare a shapeshifter impersonate his brother? And how would he get the DNA? Dean had been dead and buried for months. _"Who are you?"_

Wyatt raised a hand as if to separate them with telekinesis, but Chris' hand on his arm stopped him. Chris nodded significantly at the girl standing scared in one corner. Right, exposure = bad. Wyatt grabbed Sam, pulling him back off his brother who was pressed up against the wall.

"Dean? You alright?"

Dean nodded and picked up the knife from where Sam had dropped it when Wyatt grabbed him. He sliced a shallow cut into his forearm. "Look, if I was a shapeshifter or a Revenant or any of those things, would I be able to do this with your silver knife?"

Sam stopped struggling. "Dean?"

"I know, I look fantastic, right?"

Sam broke. He stepped forward and pulled Dean into a desperate hug. Wyatt and Chris exchanged pleased smiles as the brothers were reunited, while Pizza Girl looked on in confusion.

"So are those two, like, together?" She asked Chris of Dean and Sam.

Sam stepped back, just remembering that she was there. "What? No, no; he's my brother."

"Uh huh." She said, unconvinced. "I should go."

"Probably for the best." Chris agreed as Sam nodded sheepishly.

"But you've got my number." She added to Sam with a smile.

"Yeah, sure thing, Kathy."

Her face fell. "It's Kirsty."

"Oh…right."

She left in a huff, brushing past Chris and startling him as she went.

There was an awkward silence for a few minutes as Sam stared at his brother in awe and disbelief.

Dean shifted uncomfortably under the attention. "Uh, Sam, I'm not going anywhere."

"Right." Sam shook his head, forcing himself to take everything in. "And who are you?"

"Wyatt Halliwell, and this is my brother Chris."

"They're my keepers." Dean injected.

Sam frowned in confusion. "What?"

"Dean was being sold on the black market and we intervened." Chris explained. "It's sort of what we do."

"They're good witches. Like Glinda." Dean told his brother who's eyebrows hit his hairline in disbelief. "No, I'm not even kidding. Do that sparkly thing."

"It's called orbing." Wyatt sighed, but nonetheless he complied, orbing in and out on the spot.

"See? Trippy, huh?" Dean grinned, enjoying the look of pure disbelief on his brother's face.

"We should go, let you guys catch up." Chris said, to Wyatt's slight surprise, but then again, if he'd just gotten Chris back after months apart, he wouldn't want a couple of strangers lingering about.

"Thanks, you know, for saving my life." Dean said slightly awkwardly.

"Eh, anytime." Wyatt shrugged. "I'm just glad it worked out."

Chris stayed strangely silent, but offered them both a smile.

"Thank you," Sam said wholeheartedly. "Without my brother…just, thank you so much for whatever it is you did."

Wyatt shook Sam's offered hand. His smile faltered slightly as he noticed something slightly odd but he shook it off. "You're welcome."

Wyatt watched his brother as he also shook Sam's hand, but didn't see a reaction. They didn't necessarily mean anything of course; Chris' poker face was a lot more convincing than his older brother's.

They orbed back in silence, but as soon as they were back Wyatt turned to his brother. "Did you sense…"

"Yep." Chris replied shortly.

"Shit." Wyatt swore. He'd been hoping that he'd been mistaken. "What does it mean? He didn't feel possessed."

"I don't think he was. The girl that was there when we arrived-"

"Pizza girl?" Wyatt frowned. He hadn't sensed anything off about her, but then he hadn't really got too close.

Chris nodded. "Yeah, her. She brushed past me on the way out and I felt it; she was a demon."

"So that's why you wanted to leave so quickly." Wyatt said, realisation hitting. "Do you think Sam knew?"

"He must have done. He's a piss-poor hunter if he didn't."

Wyatt slowly let out the breath he had been holding. "Great. Now what?"

Chris blushed, a rare sight. He pulled out a pink flowered bra from his jacket pocket. "Well, I guess this doesn't belong to Sam, so we could probably use it to scry for her."

Wyatt nodded in agreement. "And then burn it. Because if Bianca finds you with some skanky demon's bra, she will kill you."

Chris sighed in resignation. "I know."

* * *

To say Ruby was surprised when she felt herself disappear in a swirl of white lights was an understatement. When she saw the two guys that had turned up at Sam's motel with Dean in tow, it all made sense. She had known she felt something off with those two.

She tried to vacate her host's body, but was anchored to the spot.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" Chris asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. "This isn't amateur hour."

"What do you want?" She asked, not rising to the bait.

"We want to know who you are and why you were hanging about with Sam Winchester." Wyatt ordered and immediately Ruby realised that she had been sorely mistaken; there wasn't 'something off' with these two, there was something very, very wrong. They must have been masking their power before, but now she could feel the whole room humming with it.

"I'm just trying to help him, really."

"Last I knew, the hunters didn't socialise with demons. Quite the opposite."

"We have a mutual enemy; Lilith." Ruby hurriedly explained, trying to talk herself out of a certain vanquish. "Last year, I tried to help them stop her before Dean's deal was due, and since then I've been helping Sam try to track her down. If you don't believe me, then just ask Sam."

"Why do you want Lilith dead?" Chris asked.

"Because she's a bitch." Ruby answered simply and honestly. "Everyone in the underworld hates her."

"And instead of teaming is with them, you decided to join forces with the Winchesters?" Wyatt asked slowly. He had been using his empathy to see if she was lying and sensed that she was telling the truth, but there was still something off about her.

"Because they're the ones that will actually be able to do it. Come on, how many demons do you think have tried to usurp Lilith over the centuries? Hundreds." Ruby explained patronisingly. "Sam and Dean are the first hunters to give it a shot, and I like their odds better."

"And Sam? What does he know of your plan?" Chris asked, voice hard and eyes cold.

"Sam I _wants_ to fight Lilith. It was his idea. And he needs me to make him the best hunter he can be to do it. Or he'll be dead…and the Winchesters' only get so many second chances." Ruby added with an eye roll. She had no idea how these two witches managed to get Dean back from Hell, but she knew that if Lilith got to Sam, there'd be nothing left to resurrect.

 _*What do you think?*_ Chris asked his brother telepathically, eyes trained on Ruby who was meeting his gaze defiantly.

 _*I think she's not lying.*_ Wyatt thought back, but they both knew that 'not lying' didn't necessarily mean that the other person was being 100% honest. They also knew that, being the good guys, it meant that they had to afford them the benefit of the doubt; innocent until proven guilty.

 _*So we let her go.*_ Chris stated rather than asked.

"So you don't want to hurt either Sam or Dean?" Wyatt asked aloud, and he wanted a definite answer before he let her go.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "It's not about killing a couple of hunters. If I had wanted Sam dead, then I've had a million chances to do it. It's about stopping Lilith."

"Fine. I'll buy it." Wyatt said after a beat, knowing that Chris would trust his lead. "But know that we'll be watching… And if you're half as smart as you seem to think you are, then you'll know that you don't want to cross us. We'll come down on you so hard and so fast, that you'll be wishing we were Lilith. Clear?"

"Crystal." Ruby answered crisply, not phased by the threat. These witches had power; she could sense that. But they were _good_ ; they weren't Lilith or Alastair or any of the other top torturers in Hell. Then she caught Chris' eye and a shiver went down her spine. He wasn't like his brother; he would do what he felt was necessary. She would have to be careful.

Wyatt dropped the wards, and in the blink of an eye she was gone, getting away as quickly as demonically possibly.

"I don't like this." Chris remarked once Ruby had vanished.

"Me neither." Wyatt admitted. "But Dean and Sam are hunters, and we've our hands full with the true innocents. Unless they ask us for help, I think we have to trust them to take care of it."

"Maybe so, but I don't trust demons."

Wyatt raised one eyebrow quizzically. "Isn't that supposed to be my line? After all, you're the one with the demon-flavoured girlfriend."

"You're just jealous." Chris replied easily.

Wyatt hurriedly cut off the not-particularly-complimentary remark as he sensed someone shimmering into their apartment. He grinned too-brightly when he recognised the shimmer as Bianca's. "Hi Bianca!"

Bianca looked at him suspiciously. "What's going on?"

"Nothing." Wyatt said too quickly.

Bianca turned to Chris expectantly.

"We were talking about how Wyatt's jealous because he can't get a girl, and I've got you." Chris offered matter-of-factly.

"Of _course_ he is." Bianca replied immediately, her tone one that plainly said _'well, duh!',_ though she did grin at Wyatt as he rolled her eyes. "I'm awesome."

"Oh, as if." Wyatt muttered, but under his breath. Bianca could be mean, but she wasn't paying attention to him anymore.

Bianca frowned. "Why is there a cheap, pink bra in your living room?"

"Chris, I _told_ you to hide it before she got here! Now she'll find out!" Wyatt stage-whispered, grinning wickedly for a split-second before his face fell in theatrical horror.

Chris glared at him. Bianca glared at Chris. Wyatt smirked smugly.

* * *

To all intents and purposes, live had gone back to normal…if you could ever call the lives of two witch/whitelighters and two demon hunters 'normal'. Wyatt went back to his charges, Chris went back to his college degree, and Sam and Dean went back to their odyssey through the demon haunts of America.

At the end of the day, although they had been keeping tabs on the Winchesters, curiosity had got the better of Wyatt and Chris. They had saved Dean, delivered him back to his brother, but, over the last couple of weeks they had spoken more than once about the Winchesters. They wanted to know what was going on and to make sure everything was alright. Specifically, to make sure Ruby wasn't doing any damage.

Wyatt and Chris orbed to the diner where Dean and Sam were eating breakfast. They picked out the brothers immediately, sitting by the window, heads close together as they talked in hushed voices. They must be working a case.

As they watched, Dean said something which irritated Sam, clapped him once on the shoulder and made his way to the little table which held an assortment of plastic cutlery and sauces, the latter of which, Dean seemed to be carefully considering.

Chris nudge his brother. "You take Dean. I'll speak to Sam."

"Wait, what?" Wyatt said, grabbing his brother's arm to stop him. "What am I mean to say?"

"I dunno." Chris shrugged. "Distract him while I find out how much Sam knows about Ruby. Or find out what Dean knows about Ruby. He's been back travelling with Sam for a couple of weeks; how much do you want to bet Ruby's popped up once or twice?"

Wyatt thought about it for a moment. "Quite a lot?"

"Quite a lot." Chris agreed, walking backwards towards Sam's table, he gave Wyatt a double thumbs up. "Go get 'em, champ."

Wyatt sighed, putting it off for as long as possible. When Dean looked like he was about to turn around (which meant he would see Chris talking to an unnerved looking Sam), Wyatt made his move. "Hey Dean."

Dean almost dropped his little packets of ketchup in surprise. "Wyatt? What are you doing here."

He shrugged and grinned. "Just following up. All part of the Halliwell service; 100% customer satisfaction guaranteed."

He was smiling far to brightly and Dean was instantly on his guard. "What's wrong?"

Wyatt's grin dimmed slightly, but then returned full-force. "What do you mean?"

"What's wrong?" Dean repeated. "No offence, but I was under the impression that we'd never see you again."

"None taken…we-I was just checking in. Seeing how you are. So…how are you?"

"Fine." Dean said guardedly, suspiciously.

"That's great. How's hunting? Hey, I don't suppose you happen to have bumped into anyone familiar? Maybe a demon called Ruby?" Wyatt asked, face a picture of wide eyed innocence that immediately put people on alert.

"What? Why are you here? Is Chris here too?" Dean asked, not buying it for a minute. He looked around and saw Chris talking to Sam at their table and immediately set off to join them.

"Great." Wyatt sighed. Chris was right; he had a terrible poker face.

"What the hell is going on?" Dean demanded as he reached the table.

As Wyatt came up behind him, he shrugged sheepishly at Chris' half-amused, half-irritated look. Oh well. Better luck next time.

* * *

Chris' attempt of speaking with Sam one-on-one had been a lot more straightforward… bamboozle him into revealing the information.

"Hi Sam. Seen Ruby lately?" Chris asked by way of introduction, and Sam choked on his coffee. Well, Chris reasoned, there was no point in beating around the bush, and there was no way Wyatt was going to buy him any more than a minute.

Sam recognised Chris instantly; when a guy turned up on your doorstop with your previously-dead brother, he tended to leave an impression. "What are you doing here?"

"Follow up." Chris said shortly. "So, Ruby's been in contact, I take it? I mean, after her quick escape that morning when we dropped of Dean at your motel."

"How did you know…?"

"I can sense demons; it's just this thing that we do." Chris replied with a shrug. "So, any word?"

"No. Of course not. She's a demon; we don't exactly keep in touch." Sam replied, his tone slightly clipped. Chris looked at him disbelievingly.

"Uh huh… You know, my girlfriend's part demon." Chris said conversationally.

Sam gave him an incredulous look. "I'm not-"

"Sleeping with Ruby?" Chris interrupted, immediately knowing the answer when Sam flushed guiltily. "Yeah, I thought so."

"Look," Sam tried, keeping him voice purposefully calm. "I'm under no illusions about what she is. She's a demon. But she saved my life, and we both have the same goal here; to kill Lilith."

"But are you both willing to sacrifice the same to get what you want?" Chris returned, fixing Sam with a serious look. "You've got something to lose now."

"Don't you think I know that?" Sam retorted sharply, and then he took a calming breath. Losing his temper wouldn't help, even if he was freaked out about how close to home this was hitting. "Look, I've been doing this for a long time. I am going to kill Lilith, but I know where the line is. I know what I'm doing."

"Then, when I sense for you, why does something feel wrong?" Chris asked, almost like he was throwing down the gauntlet.

Sam looked worried; no, he looked scared. And doubtful, and resigned, and a million other things. One thing he didn't look was surprised. "What do you mean…wrong?"

"Don't know." Chris said, watching him carefully. "Just…slightly off."

"Could it…" Sam said, trailing off and into his own thoughts. When he looked up, Chris was still watching, waiting for an answer. Sam's mind went into super speed; the truth wasn't an option, but he had to explain it somehow. "When I was a baby, a demon with yellow eyes broke into my house, killed my mother and bled into my mouth. It wanted to transfer some of it's powers to me and a bunch of other kids to turn us into an army. Last summer, he tried to collect, I died and Dean made his deal. That's probably why I feel _off_."

"I didn't know that." Chris admitted. They had done some background research into the whole Winchester family, and Sam's story fit with what they had found out. Plus it would explain why he only felt slightly strange to them; a less experienced whitelighter probably wouldn't have picked up on it. "I'm sorry. We didn't realise."

"Well, we don't exactly shout about it." Sam muttered. He felt guilty for lying, but he couldn't tell the truth. No one would understand. Hell, half the time, Sam himself didn't understand. He was stronger than he'd ever been before. He was exorcising demons with his mind, leaving the host alive and unharmed. But it meant drinking Ruby's blood. Drinking demon blood. No; they definitely wouldn't understand.

Thankfully, in Sam's opinion, he was saved from further interrogation by Dean and Wyatt's arrival.

"What's going on?" There was Dean, demanding and ever-present, Wyatt a half step behind him.

"We were just talking about Ruby."

"The hell-bitch is gone." Dean said without batting an eye.

"She'll come back." Christ countered.

"So we'll make her leave again."

 _*Sam's clear.*_ Chris telepathically sent to his brother. _*Some kind of demon attack when he was a baby left him with premonitions and that's what make's him blip on our radar.*_

 _*You sure?*_ Wyatt returned quickly and he saw Chris shrug ever-so-slightly out the corner of his eye.

_*I think so - it makes sense. Fit's with what we found out about the Winchesters.*_

There was an awkward silence while they silently communicated, but then they saw Dean was still looking at them expectantly, waiting for an explanation. "Maybe we shouldn't talk about this here." Wyatt suggested.

Sam agreed wholeheartedly. "Our motel's only two blocks away."

"Lead the way."

The 'Dreamland Motel' did not live up to it's name. Half the letters on the sign flickered on and off, so that it read 'Damnd Motel' (much more appropriate) and there was a bone-dry swimming pool next to the carpark. In the room itself, the paint was peeling, the ceiling was damp, the curtains were rotten, but nobody noticed that right away because there was a man in a long beige trench coat standing in the middle of the room. He turned around and looked surprised to see the group.

"Cas." Dean sighed, because when Castiel turned up, trouble usually followed. "Now isn't a great time."

"Wait, Castiel?" Chris asked, the surprise evident on his face. "I barely recognised you without the robes."

"What are you doing here?" Wyatt asked, because the last thing he had been expecting was to see an angel.

"Wyatt, Christopher. I was advised I might fit in better on earth without them." Castiel intoned.

"Probably a better bet."

"Wait, wait, wait." Dean stepped in. "You know each other?"

"Part-Angel, remember?" Chris said in a sing-song voice.

"So what, you all hang out in heaven together? Sitting on clouds and playing the harp?"

"Pretty much, yeah." Chris deadpanned, then he rolled his eyes. "Of course not, you idiot."

"It's only cherubs that play the harp." Castiel revealed and they all looked at him incredulously for a beat, before deciding it was probably best to disregard that comment.

"Mostly the other angels just yell at us." Wyatt said. "Or, you know, try to send us on suicide missions, which makes our Mom yell at _them,_ which shuts them up for a while, until they want something again."

"We have a very rocky relationship with the heavens." Chris agreed. "So how do you know Castiel?"

Dean shrugged. "He saves our ass. Then he disappears. Then he reappears and saves our ass again. Repeat as necessary."

 _*Future Whitelighters?*_ Wyatt thought at his brother and saw Chris shrug slightly. It seemed likely; they were hunters after all.

"I must go." Castiel said levelly. "Bobby Singer will tell you the location of the next hunt. I will meet you there. Unless you require me to aid in your transportation?"

"No!" Sam and Dean both immediately protested in unison.

"Very well." With a beat of his wings, Castiel was gone.

"How come he doesn't sparkle?" Dean asked.

"Orb." Wyatt corrected. "And there are loads of different types of angels; whitelighters, elders, arch-angels… he's not like us."

"Thank God." Chris remarked. Castiel's type were unbelievably uptight and did not appreciate Chris' sense of humour.

"So, do you want to tell me what's going on?" Dean asked, returning to the topic at hand. "I mean, I highly doubt you came all this way to say hello."

Wyatt and Chris exchanged looks, silently agreeing that Chris should be the one to explain. They didn't want to reveal that they had been keeping tabs on the Winchesters, rightly assuming that it would piss them off. Wyatt would only get flustered and Sam and Dean would probably see through his not-quite-the-whole-truth explanation.

"We were worried." Chris said. "We heard that Ruby was hanging about you guys, thought she might be up to no good, so we thought we would check in."

Dean snorted. "Of course she's up to no good. But we can handle it."

Chris shrugged. "Sure, we just wanted to give you the heads up."

Sam exhaled a breath he didn't realise he'd been holding, relieved that Chris wasn't going to say anything about his unorthodox relationship with Ruby. Dean didn't need to worry about that; he definitely wouldn't understand and he certainly wouldn't trust that Sam was the one in control.

"Well thanks." Dean said, not really sure how else to react. He wasn't used to having people pop up out of nowhere to check up on him; even their dad hadn't done that. "If you hear anything else…"

"We'll let you know." Wyatt nodded.

"But, you know, call first? If you two turn up in a cloud of sparkles, it's going to be difficult to explain." Dean smirked.

"Orbs." Wyatt corrected automatically. "But you guys are okay, random demon hangers-on aside? No side-effects from the, you know, death?"

Dean pretended to consider it. "Only the urge to eat brains."

Chris laughed. "Oh, well that's normal."

Sam was watching his brother anxiously; he knew something wasn't right, had heard Dean pacing in the night when nightmares stopped him from sleeping and saw the look on his face when he thought no one was watching. But then, all things considered, it would be more strange if Dean was miraculously 'fine' after everything he had been through.

Wyatt was watching carefully too, his empathy picking up on brave front Dean was putting on for the world. But he wouldn't push it; Sam and Dean weren't normal, they were _Hunters_. And if Wyatt started poking holes in Dean's coping mechanisms, then he wouldn't just break, he would shatter. All they could do was let Sam and Dean know that the option of help was there if they needed it.

"If there's anything you need, just call us." Wyatt offered sincerely, though he suspected it would take something truly life-threatening for them to take him up on it. Hunters and witches…they were different worlds that rarely overlapped, each used to looking out for their own, neither trusting 'outsiders' easily even if they had been thrown together the way the Winchesters and Halliwells had.

"Just yell our names if you need help. We'll hear." Chris added. "We're awesome like that."

"Thanks." Dean said. He scrawled his cell number down on a piece of motel stationery. "And that goes two ways. I may not be able to turn into sparkles-"

"Orb." Wyatt injected.

"-but I'm pretty handy with a shotgun."

"Thanks, we'll bear that in mind." Chris replied with an easy grin.

Wyatt looked slightly uneasy at the mention of guns, but recovered quickly. Hunters didn't have powers; they had to even the field somehow. "Take care of yourself, Dean. And call-"

"If I need anything." Dean finished with a smirk. "I got it. We'll be fine."

"Try living with him." Chris muttered under his breath as Wyatt shrugged sheepishly. He clapped a hand on his older brother's shoulder. "Time to go, Brother-mine. It's family dinner tonight; you can mother hen the cousins. Bye Dean, Sam."

As they disappeared into orbs, Dean and Sam could hear Wyatt's indignant protest; "I do _not_ hen!"

Dean and Sam both watched the lights disappear in silence; it was still freaky.

"Tell me we're not like that." Dean asked after a moment.

"Oh, not at all." Sam responded dryly; Dean? The overprotective big brother? Perish the thought.

Dean decided not to call his brother on the blatant use of sarcasm. "Whatever. Come on; Bobby text me the address for that suspected poltergeist. It's time to hit the road."

With a world-weary sigh, Sam shouldered his duffle and looked round the motel to check they hadn't forgotten anything. They wouldn't be back: a new case meant a new town and a new run-down, old motel. Solve the case and then move on again. The circle never ended; it was the same over and over again. Saving people, hunting things; the family business….

"Sam?" Dean called from where he was already loading up the Impala.

"Yeah," Sam called back. "I'm coming, Dean."

…At least now they knew they weren't the only family fighting.


End file.
